


Starlight Drive-In

by AcerbusHicFuit



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Bambi - Freeform, Bromance, Classic films - Freeform, Fluff, M/M, Post Blind Betrayal, bro-to-bro, drive in
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-13
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:08:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24692038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AcerbusHicFuit/pseuds/AcerbusHicFuit
Summary: Henry introduces Danse to a good, old fashioned American pastime
Relationships: Paladin Danse/Male Sole Survivor
Comments: 6
Kudos: 22





	Starlight Drive-In

"And what do you know? Travis comes outta the woodwork to help. Sweet kid, I tell you." Henry threw his arms over his head in a stretch and yawned, for they'd been walking all day. Danse scoffed a little and scanned the barren horizon.

"That was good of you to help him, though it did not sound as if Vadim had the wisest method in boosting the boy's confidence…" Henry shrugged with a dopey smirk, and he picked his way over a rock.

"When we work together, Vadim and I make up two halves of a whole idiot. Kinda like how we were in Milton General Elevator. Remember that, Danny?" Danse puffed and gave Henry a little shove to the shoulder. 

"I do recall, though not fondly."

"You're no fun." 

They continued along the field at a leisurely pace, mumbling idle conversation to each other. The field gave way to a treeline, and Henry's relentlessly running mouth came to slow when he laid eyes upon a rifted, car-filled parking lot and a building on its far end. Danse gazed out at the lot when he stopped, then went down on one knee and brandished his rifle. 

"What see you?" he whispered. Henry snorted, and he patted Danse's shoulder. 

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He paused. "It's just been a while since I've seen a drive-in." Danse's dark brow knitted, and he straightened himself. 

"I was unaware these even existed anymore. Have you ever attended one?" Henry drew out onto the parking lot. 

"You kidding? Went to this one with the boys all the time, way back in the day. Haven't gone here since high school!" He padded up to the projector building. "Place is a _goldmine_ for steel scrap, too. Guess you don't have to worry about mod material anymore, huh?" Danse warily eyed the lot before he followed. 

"Please, be cautious, Henry. There's no telling how many Ghouls could be here…" Henry scoffed and stopped by the projector tower's door.

"I wouldn't worry. You can usually _smell_ the radiation sickness from a mile away." Danse wrinkled his nose. 

"At least ready your gun, please." Henry rolled his eyes with a sleazy smile, and he pulled his .44 off his hip and cocked it. 

"Only to make you feel better." He waited for Danse to join him at his side, then started up the surprisingly lit stairs. They hit the top without interference to overlook the whole drive-in. 

Within the projection room, there was a moldy, cruddy sleeping bag on the floor, a few empty liquor bottles scattered about, and a box of _Fancy Lads'_ snack cakes on the windowsill. The projector itself, stationed behind the front window, was thoroughly dusted, but recognizable. Henry grabbed his kerchief out of his pocket and wiped down the grimy front window until he could see out of it clearly. 

"I've never had the fortune of seeing a moving picture show. What were they like?" Danse piped up. Henry chuckled a bit.

"Well, we just called 'em movies, way back when. Most of 'em were stupid, but everybody loved them."

He studied the projector for a while, then blew on it to clear off some of the dust.

"You know, I think this little sucker's still intact!" He grabbed his army knife from his toolbelt, flipped it to the screwdriver, and started fumbling with the screws holding the projector together. Danse hummed. 

"I can imagine it's likely had sufficient protection here in the tower." Henry pulled the plastic plate off the projector.

"Well, I'll be damned! It's a little dusty, but it might work if I clean it." He looked at Danse with the grin of a child on Christmas day. "If I can get her working, you wanna watch a movie?" Danse folded his arms. 

"Weren't we just searching for supplies we needed?" Henry scoffed knowingly and poked around at the circuits. 

"With all these cars here, we have more than enough scrap to take back to Sanctuary Hills. We're alright." Danse's cold eyes fell to the side, and he grumbled something under his breath before he dropped his facade. 

"I suppose I wouldn't be opposed." Henry stuck his tongue out at him. 

"Now we're talking!" He turned back to the projector. "Just gotta clean this motherboard off. I'm sure the wiring's okay, if the lights were on in the hallway." He paused, and gave a sideways glance to Danse, who shifted about in his place, visibly uncomfortable. "Danny, if you wanna go poke around the place or something, go on ahead. I'm gonna be a while." 

Danse gave him a nod. 

"Very well. I will inspect the cars for materials we can use." Henry gave him a thumbs-up and got back to the projector. 

The sun had set by the time Henry had the motherboard cleaned and the wires checked. He found a box of holotapes in the projection room, as well; all that was left was to find an intact tape. He called in Danse, who had just cracked open a car with the butt of his rifle, and brought him in to pick one out. 

The two knelt down by the box and Henry sifted through it. He grabbed a random tape to look at its label. 

" _Gone with the Wind,_ eh? A real classic, that one." He inspected the prongs, then frowned. "Damn. Rusted." He tossed it aside, then grabbed another that had a legible title with a gasp. " _The Wizard of Oz!_ The first colored live-action film in history." It was ruined as well, though whether it was to Henry's disappointment or relief was up for debate. It always had been pretty jingly for his liking.

He went through a few other classics he recognized; _The Wolf Man, The Star in the Dust,_ and _King Kong_ , though many of them were too badly corroded to go into the projector. He fished out one of the last ones, labelled _Bambi_ , and when he looked into the cartridge, he expected to see naught but corrosion. 

He was pleasantly wronged, and he showed it to Danse. 

"Man, I grew up watching this one!" Danse cocked his head to the side, and he took the holotape to inspect. 

"What is the plot?" 

"It's about a bunch of animals that live in the forest. A kid's movie, but it was pretty good. All the rage back in the day." Danse hummed. "You wanna see it? It's not very long." He nodded once, so Henry stood up and popped the tape in. "Fingers crossed." Danse rose up just after and gazed out at the screen when Henry pressed the button. 

The projector blinked. It buzzed. Then silence. Henry held his breath. The screen ahead of them flickered. 

The title theme, _Love is a Song_ , blared out across the Commonwealth. Danse jolted, and he fumbled to turn the volume down. Henry clapped and howled. 

"Goddamn! It actually works!" He beamed at Danse with a brightness that rivaled a star's and grabbed his arm. "Danny, if this doesn't make me a technical genius, I dunno what will!" Danse was a little pale. 

"Who knows how much attention the noise and light is going to attract!" Henry glared at him and paused the film just as the title card faded to the exposition. 

"We're in the middle of the American wasteland with nothing more than Travis to entertain us anymore. Lighten up and have a little fun, would you?" Danse's dark eyes held that scowl for a long time. "We're alright up here. We can see for miles. Worst case, we break out the windows, shoot whatever comes, and steal the projector back to Sanctuary." 

A heavy breath billowed from his nose. Henry gripped his wrist. 

"Danny, come on. You haven't _really_ grown up until you've seen this one." Danse held that intense stare for a while longer before he sighed and removed himself from Henry's fingers.

"You're like a child…" Henry snickered. 

"Damn right." Danse groaned.

"You win. We'll watch a few minutes, and then we'll leave." Henry punched his arm. 

"I bet all the caps in my pocket you'll stay for the whole thing." Danse huffed, and he pulled a chair away from the desk. Henry perched himself next to Danse on an upside down wastebasket left under the desk, then reached over and pressed the "play" button.

The film progressed through the celebration of Bambi's birth, Thumper's introduction and that of the summer meadow. For the first few minutes, Danse' brow remained knitted tightly, but as the story deepened, his expression relaxed, bit by bit. He leaned forward onto the windowsill, those dark eyes gleaming. 

"I… was unaware that deer were once so… elegant." Henry didn't let his amusement show, and he focused on the film. The horns of _Gallop of the Stags_ blared, then calmed to introduce The Great Prince. Then came the gunshots, and the chase back into the thickets. 

"This was a real technological marvel when it was made, Danny. The guy who drew all this made a real killing off it when it came out, from what I hear." Danse had no words, practically glued to the distant screen. _Little April Shower's_ tune jingled from the speakers, and when the storm's clashing rang throughout the drive-in, he startled. "Yeah, the storm scene always scared me as a kid-" 

Danse _hushed_ him. Henry snickered and kept quiet. 

The storm passed, then progressed into the snow scene, where Bambi and Thumper scampered around on a sheet of ice. The memory of the coming hunter came back to Henry, and a part of him was tempted to warn Danse, but a much larger part impelled him to stay quiet for a genuine reaction. 

The cellos hummed, then came the gunshots once more. The fawn went running, only to realize his mother hadn't followed him. The Prince came to deliver the news, and the screen faded. Henry tore his nostalgic eyes away from the screen to spectate Danse's reaction. 

Danse's lips were drawn back in a frown of sorts, unsure. He tapped his fingers on the sill. 

The springtime scene progressed. Henry watched through that as well as the intense stag fight between Ronno and a fully-grown Bambi. The dog hunt came and went as harshly as the wildfire, which lit up the whole lot with a bright orange sheen. 

The film left off with a reprise from the title theme, then cut off. Henry stretched his arms over his head. 

"I've seen the damn thing a thousand times, so it's lost its magic for me." He looked at Danse. "How'd you like it, Danny?" Danse didn't answer him. Henry leaned to get a better look, and he bit his cheek. 

Danse's eyes were wide and glittering with life Henry never thought to see out of him. His lips were parted, as if in anticipation of a gasp or words. His grip was tight on the sill. Henry got up and gripped the man's shoulder. 

"You okay, buddy?" Danse startled and snapped a look up at him, only to nod once. Despite his inherent age and usual hardness, that expression was as innocent as the steam from a puppy's nose in the snow. 

"Would it be out of the question to request doing this again?" he questioned softly. His heart melted and his face warmed by that brief moment of childishness, Henry smiled until the corners of his eyes crinkled.

"If you really want to."

**Author's Note:**

> Danse is too pure for this world. He needs his face squished (or his hair floofed)


End file.
